Abstract: Objective To determine the retest reliability and measurement error of walking energy consumption measurement in children with cerebral palsy in special school. Methods 13 children with cerebral palsy studying in Shanghai Pudong Special Education School from September to December in 2010 were enrolled in this study. They were asked to walk up and down continuously on a 50-meter-long walking pace in 6 minutes, while the distance of walking and the heart rate of both rest and walking were measured to calculate physical cost index (PCI). After 1 week, they took the 2nd measurement at the same time, the same location and the same condition. Then the results between the former and the later measurements were compared to identify the retest reliability and measurement error. Results The study showed a good retest reliability in heart rate of walking, distance of walking and PCI (ICC=0.77~0.83), but a low retest reliability in heart rate of rest (ICC=0.38). The study also showed a high measurement error in PCI. Conclusion PCI had good retest reliability and high measurement error, and was easily affected by the emotion of the children. So it was limited as a measurement of walking energy consumption in children with cerebral palsy.

Key words: cerebral palsy, energy consumption, walking, heart rate, measurement, reliability